Great new on 'death road'

Edward Lee

I have been writing in this newspaper for well over 30 years - and reading it for much longer than that.

One of the main threads of reporting in all that time has been the sheer waste of life on our roads.

And one of the focal points of that type of horrible news has been the notorious “death road” - the A682 between Barrowford and Gisburn.

I have reported on too many horrible deaths, both at the time of the incidents and at the heart-wrenching inquests which follow.

So the news this week that the Lancashire Road Safety Partnership is about to take steps to try and save lives has to be welcomed by everyone.

Average speed checks along the length of the road from Higherford to Gisburn should put the brakes on some of the idiots who treat this stretch of road as an unofficial racetrack.

The average speed check cameras should mean that people have to drive more responsibly, because let’s face it if you are daft enough to think driving at 100mph on that road is acceptable, you are also going to be too daft to work out how much to slow down to get your average speed down and beat the cameras.

Nearly everyone I have spoken to since the news broke on Monday has welcomed the idea, most saying that it simply has not come soon enough.

And it if saves just one life, it has to be worth every penny.

But, of course, there will be some people who do not like the news.

There are some out there who do not believe that driving at excessive speed is dangerous or even unlawful.

We have regular correspondents who complain about speeding fines and there are irresponsible social media groups out there who let other idiots know where the mobile speed cameras are each and every day,